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Manufacturer: Sony

Release Date: 03/14/2018

MSRP: $899.99

Just like TVs, sound systems are the only thing I upgrade with a TV. My last soundbar was the Samsung HW-K550, and it was decent at the time, but the subwoofer was really weak, and it has constant disconnection issues. Instead of buying an LG soundbar with my new TV, I went with Sony due to the lack of reviews for LG. I decided to spend the extra cash (like $500 extra) and get a premium, high-end soundbar.

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Right, when you start setting this up, you start noticing the premium features right away. It looks more like a piece of furniture than some piece of tech sitting in your entertainment center. This soundbar actually has video output and has wifi, and you can go into the menu through the TV and set everything up. This surprised me, as I only had soundbars that had simple settings on the bar itself with the remote.

One of the best features of this soundbar is the vertical surround feature, which allows sound to pass over you and increases the depth of the surround sound immensely. There’s really no need to turn it off, and it doesn’t mess with the sound like other soundbars do. There are also plenty of media presets, such as games, music, movies, and news. Each preset is pronounced and works well without needing any adjustments. Another software feature is the integration with Alexa and Spotify. You can control Spotify from your soundbar and have a visual on-screen, but any smart TV does this as well, so it feels like a redundant feature.

One thing I do have to mention is that DTS:X and Dolby Atmos cannot be transferred over Bluetooth or optical, so you must connect an HDMI cable for these features to work. Playing games and movies that feature Dolby Atmos sound amazing, and even DTS, or Dolby Digital Media, is crisp, and the subwoofer booms, which is quite nice. The overall sound fills the room and brings you front and center.

Overall, the HF-Z9F is a high-end soundbar that delivers every high-end sound technology available to date. With 4K and HDR passthrough, DTS:X, Dolby Atmos, Alexa support, and an actual video display, this is as high-tech as it gets right now. The Vertical Sound option brings the sound to you, and the overall sound fills the room. If you have the extra cash or want something more than an average soundbar experience, this is the way to go.

Manufacturer: LG

Release Date: 02/18/2018

MSRP: $2,999.99

TVs aren’t something this household uses very often. With this being only my third TV in 10 years, I made sure I got what I really wanted this time. My first choice for a TV this time around was LG, as they seem to be ahead of the curve with OLED TVs, which are the next step for 4K TVs as they show clearer, deeper, and more vibrant colors than LED or even LCD, and the prices have finally come down to something reasonable. LG’s brand of TVs comes with “a” processors, which help process HDR and the webOS built into the TV. One thing I couldn’t stand with my last Samsung 4K TV I reviewed was the slow as molasses OS that was buggy and never really got updated over the 3 years I had it. Sure, it looked great for the technology at the time, but LG has a silky smooth OS and UI that just can’t be beaten by any other company right now.

The TV itself is actually the heaviest and bulkiest thing I have ever purchased, despite how paper-thin it is once you get it out. This thing has a very heavy base where all the main components sit, and the screen sticking out is nearly paper-thin. The stand was a bit complicated to put together as I had to YouTube it as LG’s instructions are pretty much useless, and this TV DOES require two people to unpack and set up or you will most likely damage something. It’s too big and cumbersome for one person.

So, out of the box, that’s something you will notice first: the amazing OS. This TV also comes with an awesome smart remote that uses motion tracking like the Nintendo Wii, so you can actually point and click at what you are doing, which is a huge step forward in smart TV interactivity. The TV recognizes most inputs when they are turned on, and you can customize each input with its own picture and sound settings, which is nice. One of the biggest selling points of this TV for me was the Dolby Atmos processing and Dolby Vision and HDR by Technicolor, which display the most vivid HDR picture I have ever seen on a TV. It’s truly stunning and turns heads for sure.

I tested the TV out with an Xbox One X and a few HDR-ready games, and I was just blown away by the stunning colors this TV displays. They are so deep, rich, and vivid that it seems impossible that a TV can look this incredibly visceral. The TV has plenty of picture enhancement options for older content as well as the ability to turn it all off in the game mode and HDR picture modes. HDR is automatically detected, and the picture settings are actually perfect out of the box. LG is known for having the best-calibrate out-of-the-box displays, from TVs to monitors, and of the four LG products I have owned in the past, I can attest to this. I don’t have to mess with anything, even though I feel like I somehow have to. The options for calibrating are incredibly deep, with actual dark and bright room calibration picture profiles for professional calibrators. Most of us just have to choose the content we are watching and stick with that profile.

The TV’s speakers are surprisingly decent, with 40W speakers that are slightly bigger than the average 20W speakers most smart TVs come with, and it is equipped with Dolby Atmos built-in. The smart features of this TV are incredibly diverse, including being able to connect it to Google Assistant and Alexa, so the TV can be connected to either for smart home use. The content sharing and Bluetooth features are great for streaming to a smart device or listening to music off of your phone. There are just so many apps and features in this TV that it just feels truly like another smart device rather than a TV stuck in limbo like my previous Samsung TV that is slow and buggy and doesn’t quite have as many features as saying my phone would have.

Overall, the LG C8 is a fantastically amazing TV and the best in its class, with maybe only Sony being able to come close to picture clarity and features. LG’s WebOS is a buttery smooth experience, the Magic Remote is a step in the next generation direction for interacting with TV menus, and the number of picture options will make a video nut blush. If you have the money to spend, just go for the best on the market.